We are frequently asked about member get member / refer a friend campaigns - are they still legal? What do you have to include to be compliant?

An example we recently noted of a viral slip up came from French Connection. An email arrived in my inbox from online@frenchconnection.com.au and I thought I had probably signed up to their communications some time ago but they had only just added me to their mailout list. However, it turned out that a colleague had sent it to me from a viral campaign they had received. A few fundamental rules were broken here, as the email should have been sent to me with my colleagues name and email address in the envelope details, as well as the ‘reply to’ information, instead of directly from the brand itself.

If you want to learn the fundamentals then read on...

The basics: marketer sends a marketing communication to its existing contacts and requests or provides incentives for existing contacts to forward the marketing communication through the marketers forwarding facility to end recipients (friends, relatives or colleagues of the existing contact) that may be interested in the product, service or promotion.


It sounds easy but further conditions apply...

1. The marketer must make a clear recommendation to the existing contact that the electronic marketing message should only be forwarded to friends, family, colleagues and other individuals with whom they have a relationship.
2. The existing contact must be made aware, prior to forwarding the electronic marketing message to the end recipient, of any additional commercial content that will be automatically generated by the forwarding facility and included in the message sent to the end recipient. This includes commercial content such as banners, strap lines or sponsorship messages and images.
3. On receipt of the forwarded marketing communication it must be clear to the end recipient that the message has been sent by the existing contact (NOT the company). This is where French Connection slipped up.
4. The forwarded marketing communication must contain information that allows the end recipient to easily contact the existing contact.
5. Where, on receipt of the forwarded marketing communication, the end recipient hits ‘reply’, the automatically generated reply email address or mobile number must relate to the existing contact NOT the company.
6. The electronic marketing message received by the end recipient must include a functional unsubscribe facility that allows the end recipient to opt-out of receiving further commercial communications from the existing contact. The facility provided does not need to be automated.
7. The marketer must not use the forwarding facility to surreptitiously collect any data or contact details relating to the end recipient until such times as the recipient personally provides such information.

If you need more information on how to actually implement these conditions effectively then please do contact us for a more detailed discussion.


References:
ADMA guide to viral marketing

We’d all love it if 100% of subscribers interacted with our emails at least some of the time, but the reality is the people that are contributing to your open and click through rates are largely the same for each eDM.  Which means that about 40-70% of your list are to some degree non-responders.

So, how should communications to this group vary from messages you send to your responsive subscribers?   Here we look at how to form a successful win-back campaign, including tips on some subtle changes you can make to your approach, as well as messages specifically designed to gain an action from an inactive subscriber.

1. Change the tone of your messaging
   
   If a subscriber is not interacting with your brand then sending them the same style messaging as a responsive customer will not help matters.  The same ‘buy, buy, buy’ approach is likely to put them off further; instead entice them back in with a softer sell, a more benefits focused, value-add approach.


2. Reduce the frequency
   
   High frequency messaging is often one of the reasons subscribers become un-engaged, therefore reducing the frequency of contact is a good strategy for audiences that have become non-responsive.
   
   A recent study run by ReturnPath looked at how various retailers dealt with a subscriber that had, bought a product, continued to have an active email address but did not once open or click on an email for the 19 months that followed.  They found that most companies ignored recency of action altogether; continuing at the same level, fluctuating frequency or actually increasing touch points with the subscriber.  However some companies did take notice decreasing the frequency of messaging over time.


3. Try to learn more about them
   
   Showing a bit of honesty can work wonders; state that you have noticed that the existing communications are not hitting the spot and ask them to provide more information about what would interest them in order to add more value to future communications.


4. Win-back messages
   
   Present them with a unique offer, try to tailor the offer to individuals with any information you may have about them - preferences, previous purchases etc.  Or failing that, keep the offer open so that it would appeal to all.
   
   Including a time limit is often a good strategy as it develops a sense of urgency that can increase your response rate.  An effective subject line is a key ingredient to the success of these eDMs, as one of the hardest aspects is gaining cut through and enticing them into opening your email.
   
   Send a series of messages, dropping subscribers out as they respond.  Vary the messaging in terms of the offer, the creative, the subject line and time of send.


5. Give them options but don’t be afraid of asking them to unsubscribe
   
   If there are still no improvements in response after implementing some or all of the above strategies then do not be afraid to ask them to unsubscribe, or inform them that they will be unsubscribed on a certain date if no response is provided.  With ISPs now looking at engagement as one of the metrics contributing to spam categorisation it is important that you are not sending to a large number of non responsive subscribers.  Give them the option to choose their content preferences, change their frequency or to simply leave the list.
   
   In the same study ReturnPath found that some companies choose to just stop sending emails to non-responders after a certain period of time, without any notification.  This is not recommended; you should always inform subscribers if you are going to make the decision to end the dialogue completely.

References:

Return Path - The One-Way Conversation: Email Marketing to the Non-Responsive Subscriber (2010)

 

The Returnity team recently attended and sponsored the iMedia Summit, a networking event for senior digital marketing execs from some of Australia’s biggest brands.  We sponsored the BBQ cooking class, a fun day was had by all, check out some of the pics from the day – we hope to see you there next year.

Measuring and improving the ROI of e-mail marketing campaigns was cited as a challenge by 65 percent of marketers surveyed last year. The majority of those surveyed used reporting metrics like bounces, opens, clicks and unsubscribes to gauge email campaign success. Less than 50 percent were tracking conversion rates and 25 percent considered clickstream data for a true understanding of recipient activity after clicking on a link in the email.

Not all email campaigns sent are intended to drive the recipient to make a purchase but all emails should result in a transaction to allow you to track and measure the recipient’s interest or need. Before you send an email, consider the path you would like the recipient to take and the points along that path you are able to measure. There are many commercial website tracking products available on the market but a well planned Google Analytics implementation should provide you with enough insight to enable you to gauge success and value from your email activity. It’s free to use the GA software but it’s worth investing the time and the money to set up GA correctly, in order to effectively track your click to conversion path and associated goals.

Returnity have recently integrated GA link tracking into our Ehlo email marketing platform. Using this feature will ensure that click-through data from specific email links is referenced as a source in your GA website tracking. As with banner tracking, you are able to identify the specific emails and links responsible for traffic on your website. Take this to the next level and you are able to identify the path a recipient takes after clicking on the link in an email and whether or not it leads to a successful transaction.

By closely monitoring your analytics you will be able to identify obstacles and blockages in the path between engagement and transaction. Through a tracked Test & Adjust Cycle these obstacles can be addressed.

We recently sent an email for a client where the primary objective was to capture recipient details through an enquiry form and identify which services where of most interest. The initial email sent got a fantastic delivery and open rate, and the click-through rate was above average, however the number of completed forms was disappointing. Through in-form GA tracking we were able to identify the drop-off point in the form and make an adjustment. The email was re-sent the following month with a significant improvement in results. 

It’s that simple to control and maximise your ROI.

(Survey Metrics: from MarketingSherpa).

Delivery is fast becoming the hot topic in the email world. Major ISPs such as Hotmail, GMail and Yahoo constantly have to evolve their platforms to contend with and out-wit the spammers. It is estimated that 55 billion spam emails hit the larger ISPs on a daily basis*. Hotmail estimates 3.8 billion attempt delivery into Hotmail.com, Live and MSN inboxes on any given day. ISPs go to great lengths to create complex barriers of entry to protect their customers and provide a safer environment in blocking or syphoning off suspicious emails into junk folders. 

As legitimate email marketers it is difficult to keep abreast of the ISP entry changes and ensure that you are demonstrating best practices across the board with your online activity.

There are three principles that can be adopted to improve your online reputation which in turn will help you broaden reach and be in a strong position to grow a healthy customer database that is both engaged and more cost effective to run. 

EMAIL IDENTITY | SENDER REPUTATION | DATA INTEGRITY

ISPs have a multi-faceted and complex barrier of entry. They use a number of criteria to deem whether your messages are genuine or coming from an unknown or suspicious source. With increasing volumes of spam and phishing scams, detection procedures have become more sophisticated, using a scorecard based on performance across a number of metrics.  A combination of putting your ‘best foot forward’ in these fundamental areas will help increase your reach and ultimately your ROI. 

With email fast becoming the most cost effective marketing channel, it makes sense that you would want your messages to cut through; investing in a great proposition and creative becomes a futile exercise if you are only reaching a small part of your subscriber database, and losing out because the ISPs are deeming your messages as suspicious.

Demonstrating best practices in the building of email identity, treating subscribers with respect and using legitimately acquired data are three wins that will enable your messages to fulfill their potential.

EMAIL IDENTITY

• Authenticate your email, implement Sender ID & DKIM
• Establish a sending frequency, it’s about engagement not volume
• Provide your physical address and contact details in all communications
• Register your primary and secondary domains
• Provide a clear and working unsubscribe mechanisim

Sender ID – Simply put this is the process of flagging your domain to an ISP (predominantly Hotmail) that your email is coming from is a genuine sender. Sender ID is a simple DNS query. It is free to run, will help protect your brand from spoofers and provide a clear message to Hotmail that you are a legitimate mailer communicating to customers that have expressed a wish to receive communications from you.

HOW TO IMPLEMENT SENDER ID >>>

DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM) – DKIM is another authentication method used mainly by GMail and Yahoo! The practice is widely being adopted by other major ISPs as a recognised deterrent. Implementing DKIM is a marginally more involved procedure than Sender ID but once done has the same impact on delivery into a wider range of ISPs. DKIM works on the principle that an encrypted ‘private key’ is passed through to the ISP receiving server, a check is performed to find the matching ‘public key’ which in turn validates the legitimacy of the mailing, increasing the chances of delivery.

HOW TO IMPLEMENT DKIM >>>

SENDER REPUTATION

• Pro-actively manage your subscriber complaints and unsubscribes
• Set client expectations at registration, what will they get when they sign up
• Offer choices on content types and frequency 
• If you are asking for personal data, be clear on what it will be used for

Reputation is how you are perceived online by your customers and the ISPs. Building reputation means being clear and upfront about who you are, demonstrating best practices with all your online activity and data capture policies. Reputation  is most commonly built on a feedback from ISP customers when we are talking about email. Hotmail for example have a number of ways of scoring reputation.  Hotmail use an in-house Junk e-Mailing Reporting system that allows their customers to rank your reputation. This is driven by looking at the percentage of users that mark your mailings as junk or add you to their safe senders lists. To improve reputation it is imperative that you pro-actively manage complaints and a subscriber’s wish to cut their relationship with you. 

At Returnity, our email platform Ehlo will handle the automatic removal of subscribers hitting 'spam’ and 'unsubscribe’ from your email program. It’s a common myth that opt-in subscribers do not use the spam button. It is in your interest to remove people that express a wish to no-longer receive your emails.

Reputation can be improved by paying closer attention to relevance through segmentation and personalisation. Reviewing the frequency of your mailings is a proven method of gaining customer trust, it is important to aim for engaging content that keeps customers. Review your results after each mailing, what content was successful, what was not. In order to build reputation it is important your communications are a constant work in progress, they need to be fluid to keep customers engaged. Finally, be upfront about what your customers can expect when they join your email program. Offer them subscription choices on the format of the mails, the content and the frequency. 

DATA INTEGRITY

• Know where your data is coming from and keep audits
• Be transparent about why you are collecting data and what you will do with it
• Review points of data capture, ensure you are only asking for relevant information 
• Use double optin – double consent and validated email address
• Remove hardbounces and unsubscribes from every send
• Use data validation to ensure data is clean and formatted properly

Ensuring your data has been acquired following best practices is key to building reputation and delivery. Review how you are capturing data and from what sources, have all users expressed a pro-active wish to receive mailings from you?

Poorly managed data can get you into trouble in many ways. Without clear permission you will see high 'spam complaints’ leading to poor reputation. Poor quality data will lead to high bounce rates which leads to emails being blocked or black listed as not knowing if your subscriber data is active and formatted correctly raises suspicion with the ISPs.

ISPs put 'honey pot’ email address in the public online domain as a measure to catch out harvesters not acquiring data through the proper channels. Hitting a honey pot is a quick way to damage reputation and even get black listed. Know where your data has come from and ensure that the recipient has given their permission for you to contact them.

Ensure your data has been cleaned, unsubscribe and hard bounces removed prior to sending an email out to your customers. 

Delivery is just the first step, it is not a guarantee that your subscribers will be more engaged, that is down to your proposition and relevancy. ISPs are looking towards using interaction data in the near future to authenticate email, building customer trust and serving interesting, relevant content will ensure you are ahead of the game.

Talk to your Returnity Account Manager about reviewing your email policies, running an audit or for more information and strategies on how to improve your delivery and ROI.

EMAIL IDENTITY | SENDER REPUTATION | DATA INTEGRITY

By Alex Liberty

Email marketing and social media are linked by a common ground of customers who have given you permission to talk with them. Whether through email subscription, Facebook ‘fanning’, LinkedIn ‘connections’, Twitter or other social networking channel, customers who opt-in to your marketing communications are opening themselves to your business or your brand. While cross-channel links from email to Facebook to Twitter (and vice-versa) are becoming commonplace, the more strategic integrations are still working their way through the pipeline to glory.

This blog post on 7 Tricks Email can steal from Social recently published on iMedia Connection caught my eye. In particular, the section “By Invitation Only” deserves close consideration.

By invitation only
“It may seem counterintuitive to limit your content to a specific audience, but doing so creates ambassadors who will share your content for you. People like to feel special, and they like to tell their friends about things that are cool. This model has been adopted with huge success by some cutting-edge online "private sale" boutique retailers. Invitations are required to create an account, and each day, an email goes out to members promoting that day's sale. Members can invite friends via email, thereby earning a referral bonus for each friend who makes a purchase. This tactic can also work as a "friends and family" event. Your subscribers get access to a special promotion, and they get to share the wealth with their friends. This can be a win-win situation: Customers feel good about sharing a deal, and the friends who received the deal might like it so much they sign up for your email marketing.”

(Ben Ardito: http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/26787.asp)

We all love an experience that is “truly” exclusive and most of us would get busy sharing the story on the back of a memorable experience. Yet most marketers find it too difficult (too risky) to make the sacrifice of excluding the majority of their customer base to create something that is rare and unique and worthy of word of mouth.

Do exclusive clubs have a place in the marketing suite?

If word of mouth is the new currency in marketing, is it worth shunning some customers in order to create a group of passionate brand ambassadors?